Using tri-axial accelerometers to identify wild polar bear behaviors
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Date Issued
2017Author
Pagano, Anthony M.Rode, K. D.
Cutting, A
Owen, Megan A.
Jensen, S
Ware, J. V.
Robbins, Ct
Durner, Gm
Atwood, Todd C.
Obbard, M. E.
Middel, K.R.
Thiemann, Gw
Williams, Tm
Subject Terms
POLAR BEARSINNOVATIVE TECHNOLOGY
EXPERIMENTAL METHODS
BEHAVIOR
ZOOS
SAN DIEGO ZOO
BROWN BEARS
CANADA
Common Name
1863-5407, 1613-4796Journal
Endangered Species ResearchVolume
32Start page
19End page
33
Metadata
Show full item recordDOI
10.3354/esr00779Alternative link
http://www.int-res.com/abstracts/esr/v32/p19-33/Abstract
Tri-axial accelerometers have been used to remotely identify the behaviors of a wide range of taxa. Assigning behaviors to accelerometer data often involves the use of captive animals or surrogate species, as their accelerometer signatures are generally assumed to be similar to those of their wild counterparts. However, this has rarely been tested. Validated accelerometer data are needed for polar bears Ursus maritimus to understand how habitat conditions may influence behavior and energy demands. We used accelerometer and water conductivity data to remotely distinguish 10 polar bear behaviors. We calibrated accelerometer and conductivity data collected from collars with behaviors observed from video-recorded captive polar bears and brown bears U. arctos, and with video from camera collars deployed on free-ranging polar bears on sea ice and on land. We used random forest models to predict behaviors and found strong ability to discriminate the most common wild polar bear behaviors using a combination of accelerometer and conductivity sensor data from captive or wild polar bears. In contrast, models using data from captive brown bears failed to reliably distinguish most active behaviors in wild polar bears. Our ability to discriminate behavior was greatest when species- and habitat-specific data from wild individuals were used to train models. Data from captive individuals may be suitable for calibrating accelerometers, but may provide reduced ability to discriminate some behaviors. The accelerometer calibrations developed here provide a method to quantify polar bear behaviors to evaluate the impacts of declines in Arctic sea ice.Type
ArticleRights
© The authors 2017. Open Access under Creative Commons by Attribution Licence. Use, distribution and reproduction are un - restricted. Authors and original publication must be creditedae974a485f413a2113503eed53cd6c53
10.3354/esr00779
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Except where otherwise noted, this item's license is described as © The authors 2017. Open Access under Creative Commons by Attribution Licence. Use, distribution and reproduction are un - restricted. Authors and original publication must be credited